Most Read

Most Read

Most Read

Boks use winning score to help feed poor people

100,000 raffle tickets costing R32.12 each are being sold to reflect the winning 32-12 tally

19 May 2020 - 16:11 Mark Gleeson

Siya Kolisi lifts the Webb Ellis Cup and celebrates with team mates after their side win the Rugby World Cup 2019 Final between England and South Africa at International Stadium Yokohama on November 2, 2019 in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan. Picture: CRAIG MERCER / GETTY IMAGES

Cape Town - SA’s World Cup winning squad are using the score from the 2019 final in Japan to launch a campaign to feed people left destitute by the effect of the Covid-19 crisis.

Altogether 100,000 raffle tickets are being sold at R32.12 to pay for food parcels and soup kitchens. The Springboks beat England 32-12 in last November’s final to win the World Cup for a third time.

Many of the top Bok players have already launched their own initiatives to collect food for hungry people, notably captain Siya Kolisi.

In return, those who buy tickets have a chance to win a host of memorabilia from the tournament donated by the players, a total of 44 prizes (32 + 12).

“When I made the call for the squad to make donations, they were all in within a matter of hours, boots and all,” said coach Rassie Erasmus.

“We talked a bit last year [during the World Cup] about what pressure was — not having a job, having a family member murdered — and now this pandemic has put millions out of work and left as many struggling every day to put food on the table,” he added.

SA has enforced one of the strictest lockdowns of any country in the world and it has taken a heavy toll on the economy, which was in recession before Covid-19 struck, increasing the daily hardship for millions of poor people.

The country recorded 286 coronavirus deaths, with 16,433 confirmed cases, the health ministry reported on Monday.